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Mackenzie Higgins is also
named a Rising Star at CHIMA’s 2020 Annual Convention
Centennial, CO – 
and founder, Beth Just, received the CHIMA (Colorado Health Information
Management Association) Legacy Award in honor of her life’s work advancing the
HIM profession. The award was announced in conjunction with CHIMA’s 2020
Virtual Annual Meeting, where Just Associates’ identity manager, Mackenzie
Higgins, also received the association’s Rising Star Award.
Just, MBA, RHIA, FAHIMA, passed
away in July 2019 following a lengthy battle with cancer. Over the course of
her 30-year career, she was dedicated to discovering and applying innovative
solutions to the costs and challenges of maintaining patient data
quality to improve patient care. She was equally dedicated to improving
the HIM profession, ensuring its voice was heard and reshaping its
role in an evolving—and often tumultuous—healthcare environment.
“Those of us fortunate enough to know Beth
were continuously amazed by her tenacity, dedication and enthusiasm. She cared
deeply for her employees, colleagues and the HIM profession as a whole, and we
are grateful to CHIMA for honoring her memory with this Legacy Award,” said
Lora Hefton, executive vice president, Just Associates. “She has left an
enduring legacy that we at Just Associates remain dedicated to carrying out by
serving our clients with the integrity and expertise she instilled in us all.”
The Legacy Award is for deceased or retired
CHIMA members who exemplified the professional image of the association through
partnership, leadership, research and development, mentoring, publications,
advancement of the profession and/or recognition by other organizations. Just
was a well-respected HIM leader, teacher and visionary who founded Just
Associates in 2002 and built it into a nationally recognized leader in patient
matching and health information data integrity and management. She was a
tireless advocate for HIM and spoke frequently at leading state and national
HIM and health IT association conferences. Just also served in numerous
national and state volunteer roles throughout her career, including on the
AHIMA board and as CHIMA past-president and board chair.
CHIMA also recognized Higgins with its 2020
Rising Star Award, which distinguishes up-and-coming HIM professionals who
exemplify the professional image of the association and demonstrate significant
potential for future leadership, innovation, creativity, volunteerism, service,
and administrative capacity. Honorees have also made a strong commitment to the
HIM profession through active participation in local, state, and national AHIMA
activities, particularly those that promote HIM education.
Through her work, Higgins has shown an ability
to develop relationships with her clients and peers while demonstrating her
growing expertise of HIM’s best practices. Higgins, who joined Just Associates
in 2017, chaired CHIMA’s Technology Committee for two years and was named the
2018 CHIMA Outstanding Volunteer. Higgins also participated as a panelist at
the 2019 CHIMA Annual Meeting, sharing her experience navigating the world of a
non-traditional HIM role in hopes of bringing a new perspective to the
up-and-coming generation of HIM professionals. She also is a session presenter
at the 2020 Annual Meeting.
“We are proud that Mackenzie has been
recognized by CHIMA for her devotion to the HIM profession. She already
exhibits many of the qualities Just Associates looks for in an up-and-coming
leader and has shown her ability to develop relationships with her clients and
peers while demonstrating her growing expertise of HIM best practices,” said
Hefton. “Perhaps her most impressive quality is Mackenzie’s love of learning
and commitment to improve with every project she leads. She embodies what it
means to be a Rising Star in the HIM world.”
About Just
Associates, Inc.
A recognized leader in health
information data integrity and management for nearly two decades, Just
Associates, Inc. (www.justassociates.com) is a healthcare
data integration consulting firm that delivers superior value to its clients
through improved patient matching. Just Associates has the process expertise
and systems knowledge to deliver tailored, value-added solutions that improve
clients’ financial outcomes and business processes, support delivery of quality
patient care, and meet the expectations of diverse stakeholders through
improved data integrity.
Elizabeth S Goar
8133332844
liz@npccs.com
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